Al-Manar TV soars into ratings 'Top 10'

[bemildred]

The Arab world tuned into the events in Lebanon in July, and Hizbullah's Al-Manar TV station was one of the main beneficiaries, according to ratings released by Ipsos-Stat.

As detailed in the Mena Report, a publication of the Al Bawaba Media and Technology group, the biggest surprise in the ratings, measured between July 15 and 28, during the war in Lebanon, was the emergence of Al-Manar as the No. 10 station Arab satellite station, after coming in at only No. 83 in the previous survey.

The survey covered all classes and age groups in Saudi Arabia, the largest market in the region and a market that is representative of the entire Arab world both in terms on population and because of its diversity of Arab cultures, the report said.

The survey also showed a significant increase in the number of youths watching news channels.

JPost

[HuffleClaw]

1. i guess folks were tired of hearing only one side of the story?

and its why they've made it a crime to air it in the US. can't have people seeing the truth.

[maalak]

2. have you seen what airs on Hezbollah tv?

personally i'm not a fan of hate speech and broadcasts that suggest i should be killed because i'm a jew, but maybe that's just me...

[bemildred]

3. Hezbollah's Al-Manar TV survived attacks

BEIRUT, Lebanon -- Its headquarters was leveled, its antennas pounded, its transmissions jammed and Web site hacked. Yet, throughout 34 days of ferocious fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, the group's Al-Manar TV stayed on the air - mocking Israeli military power from studios in secret bunkers.

How is a mystery. For security reasons, Al-Manar officials won't say where they located makeshift studios. The station stayed on the air even after its main offices south of Beirut were flattened by Israeli warplanes, beaming out live talk shows with political guests. Newscasts were broadcast on schedule.

Now that the war has ended, Al-Manar's public relations chief Ibrahim Farhat said the broadcaster would rebuild its bombed-out headquarters. But its plans have not yet come together about where and how quickly. He said the station was still taking stock of its losses.

During the conflict, which began July 12 after Hezbollah killed three Israeli soldiers and captured two in a cross-border raid, the station routinely aired reports on guerrilla rockets strikes on northern Israel and ground battles with Israeli troops.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1107AP_Mideast_Guerrilla_TV.html